Character Inputting Method And Device And Intelligent Terminal

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a character inputting method, device and an intelligent terminal, the method including: when a virtual key in a virtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected, invoking a first probability statistical table matching at least one character having been displayed by at least one virtual key having been selected; displaying a part of the candidate characters with the highest combination probabilities or all of the candidate characters in the invoked first probability statistical table respectively on virtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, and resetting focus on a preset virtual key, wherein any candidate character displayed on a virtual key configured with higher level has higher combination probability; and performing operations above periodically until an ideogram or a character sequence to be input is selected, and inputting the selected ideogram or the character sequence selected in an input area.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit and priority of Chinese PatentApplication No. 201410747073.7 filed with the State IntellectualProperty Office of People's Republic of China on Dec. 8, 2014, thecontent of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to the field of display technologies andparticularly to a character inputting method and device and anintelligent terminal.

When a character is to be input on an application interface of anintelligent terminal widely applied at present, a virtual key arrangedin a virtual on-screen keyboard layout of the intelligent terminal needsto be selected by using an input control device, but typically the keysarranged on the input control device are not in a one-to-onecorrespondence with virtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboardlayout due to a limited number of keys, so a user inputting thecharacter needs to select the desired virtual key by moving the focus bymeans of navigation keys (Up, Down, Left and Right keys) on the inputcontrol device.

SUMMARY

Some embodiments of the disclosure provide a character inputting methodincluding:

when a virtual key in a virtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected bya user, invoking a first probability statistical table matching at leastone character having been displayed by at least one virtual key havingbeen selected, wherein the first probability statistical table recordscombination probabilities of candidate characters respectively beingcombined with the at least one character;

displaying a part of the candidate characters with the highestcombination probabilities or all of the candidate characters in theinvoked first probability statistical table respectively on virtual keysin the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, and reseting focus on a presetvirtual key, wherein in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, thepreset virtual key is configured with the highest level, any of othervirtual keys spaced a greater number of steps apart from the presetvirtual key is configured with a lower level, the number of steps is theleast number of virtual keys along a path from the preset virtual key tothe any of other virtual keys, and any of the candidate charactersdisplayed on one of the virtual keys configured with a higher level hashigher combination probability; and

performing operations above periodically until an ideogram or acharacter sequence to be input is selected by the user, and inputtingthe ideogram or the character sequence selected by the user in an inputarea.

Some embodiments of the disclosure further provide a character inputtingdevice including a memory and one or more processors, wherein the memorystores one or more computer readable program codes, and the one or moreprocessors are configured to execute the one or more computer readableprogram codes:

when a virtual key in a virtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected bya user, to invoke a first probability statistical table matching atleast one character having been displayed by at least one virtual keyhaving been selected, wherein the first probability statistical tablerecords combination probabilities of candidate characters respectivelybeing combined with the at least one character;

to display a part of the candidate characters with the highestcombination probabilities or all of the candidate characters in theinvoked first probability statistical table respectively on virtual keysin the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, and to reset focus on a presetvirtual key, wherein in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, thepreset virtual key is configured with the highest level, any of othervirtual keys spaced a greater number of steps apart from the presetvirtual key is configured with a lower level, the number of steps is theleast number of virtual keys along a path from the preset virtual key tothe any of other virtual keys, and any of the candidate charactersdisplayed on one of the virtual keys configured with a higher level hashigher combination probability; and

when an ideogram or a character sequence to be input is selected by theuser, to input the ideogram or the character sequence selected by theuser in an input area.

Some embodiments of the disclosure further provide an intelligentterminal including a character inputting device including a memory andone or more processors, wherein the memory stores one or more computerreadable program codes, and the one or more processors are configured toexecute the one or more computer readable program code:

when a virtual key in a virtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected bya user, to invoke a first probability statistical table matching atleast one character having been displayed by at least one virtual keyhaving been selected, wherein the first probability statistical tablerecords first probability statistical table records combinationprobabilities of candidate characters respectively being combined withthe at least one character;

to display a part of the candidate characters with the highestcombination probabilities or all of the candidate characters in theinvoked first probability statistical table respectively on virtual keysin the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, and to reset focus on a presetvirtual key, wherein in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, thepreset virtual key is configured with the highest level, any of othervirtual keys spaced a greater number of steps apart from the presetvirtual key is configured with a lower level, the number of steps is theleast number of virtual keys along a path from the preset virtual key tothe any of other virtual keys, and any of the candidate charactersdisplayed on one of the virtual keys configured with a higher level hashigher combination probability; and

when an ideogram or a character sequence to be input is selected by theuser, to input the ideogram or the character sequence selected by theuser in an input area.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to make the technical solutions according to the embodiments ofthe disclosure more apparent, the drawings to which reference is made inthe description of the embodiments will be described below briefly, andapparently the drawings in the description below are merely illustrativeof some of the embodiments of the disclosure, and those ordinarilyskilled in the art can further derive from these drawings other drawingswithout any inventive effort. In the drawings;

FIG. 1 illustrates a flow chart of operations of a character inputtingmethod according to some embodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 2A, FIG. 2B and FIG. 2C illustrate schematic diagram of threevirtual on-screen keyboard layout according to some embodiments of thedisclosure respectively;

FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic diagram of a virtual on-screen keyboardlayout with the candidate characters from a first probabilitystatistical table depicted in Table 1 displayed thereon;

FIG. 4A illustrates a schematic diagram of a virtual on-screen keyboardlayout selected by a user inputting a Chinese character according tosome embodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 4B illustrates a schematic diagram of another virtual on-screenkeyboard layout selected by a user inputting a Chinese characteraccording to some embodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 5A illustrates a schematic diagram of a layout of candidatecharacters displayed on virtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboardlayout illustrated in FIG. 4A;

FIG. 5B illustrates a schematic diagram of a layout of candidatecharacters displayed on virtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboardlayout illustrated in FIG. 4B;

FIG. 6A to FIG. 6F illustrate schematic diagrams of the candidatecharacters, displayed on virtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboardlayout, varying with at least one characters corresponding to at leastone virtual keys having been selected during the process for inputtingthe Chinese character “

”;

FIG. 7 illustrates a schematic structural diagram of a characterinputting device according to some embodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 8 illustrates a schematic structural diagram of an intelligentterminal according to some embodiments of the disclosure;

FIG. 9 illustrates a simplified structural diagram of an input controldevice according to some embodiments of the disclosure; and

FIG. 10 illustrates a specific structural diagram of an intelligentterminal according to some embodiments of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of thedisclosure more apparent, the disclosure will be further described belowwith reference to the drawings, and apparently the embodiments describedbelow are only a part but not all of the embodiments of the disclosure.All the other embodiments which can occur to those ordinarily skilled inthe art based upon the embodiments here of the disclosure without anyinventive effort will fall into the scope of the disclosure.

When a character is to be input by using the existing virtual on-screenkeyboard of the intelligent terminal, the focus needs to be movedfrequently through the navigation keys of the input control device, soin order to improve this troublesome and time-consuming operation, andthe efficiency of inputting characters of an inputting device, there isprovided a new character inputting device according to some embodimentsof the disclosure, where a virtual on-screen keyboard layout of thecharacter inputting device is different from the existing virtualon-screen keyboard layout, and candidate characters displayed onrespective virtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout may notbe fixed but may, under some rule, vary with at least one characterhaving been displayed by at least one virtual keys selected by a user.It shall be noted that the character inputting device to which theembodiments of the disclosure relate may be configured in an intelligentTV set including but not limited to an intelligent TV set with anAndroid system or an intelligent TV set with another system; andmoreover it can also be applicable to other intelligent terminalswithout involving touch screen-based selection operations.

According to some embodiments of the disclosure, there is provided acharacter inputting device with a virtual on-screen keyboard layout,where the virtual on-screen keyboard layout may include a plurality ofvirtual keys of the same and/or different sizes, and in the virtualon-screen keyboard layout, a highest level may be configured for apreset one of the virtual keys, and any of other virtual keys spaced agreater number of steps apart from the preset virtual key may beconfigured with a lower level; and when a virtual key in the virtualon-screen keyboard layout is selected by a user, a first probabilitystatistical table matching at least one character having been displayedby at least one virtual key having been selected is invoked, a part ofcandidate characters with the highest combination probabilities or allof the candidate characters in the invoked first probability statisticaltable may be respectively displayed on virtual keys in the virtualon-screen keyboard layout by making any of the candidate charactersdisplayed on one of the virtual keys configured with a higher level havehigher combination probability, and the focus may be reset on the presetvirtual key, so that any candidate character displayed on one of thevirtual keys closer to the preset virtual key has a higher combinationprobability where the focus is set, to thereby avoid moving operationstroublesome to the user and facilitate the selection of the virtual keysfor the characters desired by the user. Moreover after the at least onevirtual key is selected by the user, candidate ideograms or charactersequences may be displayed on the virtual keys in the current virtualon-screen keyboard layout by also making any of candidate ideograms orcandidate character sequences displayed on one of the virtual keysconfigured with a higher level have higher association probability sothat any ideogram or character sequence displayed on one of the virtualkeys closer to the focus has a higher association probability, and inthis way, the ideogram or character sequence desired by the user can bereached along a path with a less number of steps to thereby improve theefficiency of inputting the ideogram or character sequence, and also anexperience of the user, to some extent. In those embodiments, thecandidate characters refer to any letter or digit, and may include theat least one character having been displayed by at least one virtual keyhaving been selected. The character sequence refers to a sequence ofcharacters, e.g., a word.

The solution according to some embodiments of the disclosure will bedescribed below in connection with some embodiments of the disclosure,although the disclosure includes but will not be limited to thefollowing embodiments.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, there is illustrated a flow chart ofoperations in a character inputting method according to some embodimentsof the disclosure, where the character inputting method may beapplicable to an intelligent terminal including a screen, e.g., aintelligent TV set, a flat panel TV set, a tablet PC, a smart phone,etc.; and a virtual on-screen keyboard layout may be arranged on thescreen of the intelligent terminal, the virtual on-screen keyboardlayout may include a plurality of virtual keys, the focus may be set ona preset virtual key configured with the highest level, any of othervirtual keys spaced a greater number of steps apart from the presetvirtual key may be configured with a lower level, and the number ofsteps is the least number of virtual keys along a path from the presetvirtual key to the any of other virtual keys.

The method may include the following operations:

In the operation 101, when a virtual key in a virtual on-screen keyboardlayout is selected by a user, a first probability statistical tablematching at least one character having been displayed by at least onevirtual key having been selected may be invoked.

In some embodiments of the disclosure, the user may select the virtualkey through an input control device, that is, the user may transmit acorresponding operation instruction to the intelligent terminal throughthe input control device, for example, the user may move the focusthrough Up, Down, Left and Right movement keys and selects the virtualkey displaying a desired character through a confirmation key.

Before the operation 101, other operations may be performed first: forexample, the virtual on-screen keyboard layout may be initialized, andcharacters may be displayed based on a default first probabilitystatistical table.

A part or all of the candidate characters in the default firstprobability statistical table may be displayed on the virtual keys inthe initialized virtual on-screen keyboard layout.

FIG. 2A, FIG. 2B and FIG. 2C illustrate schematic diagrams of threevirtual on-screen keyboard layouts respectively.

The virtual on-screen keyboard layout may include a preset number ofvirtual keys. In the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, the focus may beset on the preset virtual key; and a plurality of virtual keysconfigured with a level 1 may be arranged one step apart from the presetvirtual key, a plurality of virtual keys configured with a level 2 maybe arranged two steps apart from the preset virtual key, and so on, andafter the preset number of virtual keys are arranged as such, any of thevirtual keys spaced a greater number of steps apart from the presetvirtual key is configured with a lower level, where the preset virtualkey may be positioned centrally in the virtual on-screen keyboard layoutor at an edge of the virtual on-screen keyboard layout.

Firstly in FIG. 2A, the focus may be set centrally, and the virtualon-screen keyboard layout may be designed as a diamond, the virtual keysmay be shaped as quadrangles, the respective virtual keys may be of thesame size, the focus may be set on the central virtual key configuredwith the highest level, and any of other virtual keys spaced a greaternumber of steps apart from the preset virtual key may be configured witha lower level, where the number of steps is the least number of virtualkeys along a path from the preset virtual key to the any of the othervirtual keys.

Secondly in FIG. 2B, the focus may be set centrally, the virtualon-screen keyboard layout may be designed as circles including aplurality of concentric circles with different radiuses, the virtualon-screen keyboard layout may be divided radically into a plurality ofdifferent virtual keys, and the respective virtual keys may be ofdifferent sizes. The focus may be set on the central circular virtualkey configured with the highest level, and any of other virtual keysspaced a greater number of steps apart from the preset virtual key maybe configured with a lower level.

Thirdly the focus may be set at an edge of the virtual on-screenkeyboard layout, and the virtual on-screen keyboard layout may bedesigned as a diamond or a circle. As illustrated in FIG. 2C, the focusmay be set at the left edge of the virtual on-screen keyboard layout anda plurality of virtual keys may be arranged sequentially from the leftto the right, and any of other virtual keys spaced a greater number ofsteps apart from the preset virtual key may be configured with a lowerlevel.

It shall be noted that there are a number of possible virtual on-screenkeyboard layout according to some embodiments of the disclosure, whichare pre-stored in the intelligent terminal, and any of which is invokedselectively in response to a demand of the user to be operative to inputcharacters.

Moreover the first probability statistical table may be generated as aresult of learning by the character inputting device, or a probabilitystatistical table in an existing character combination probabilitystatistical library for inputting ideograms or character sequences maybe applied directly, where the character combination probabilitystatistical library may further record probability statistical tablespreset for respective input attributes, for example, charactercombinations for ideograms or character sequences related to shoppingmay be set in some statistical library, character combinations forideograms or character sequences related to football may be set inanother statistical library, etc.

Moreover in some embodiments, only one ideogram or character sequencemay be input in reality dependent upon the respective statisticallibrary preset for the input attributes, and phrases, related to theideogram or character sequence, including the ideogram or charactersequence are displayed concurrently in a pull-down list, and then theuser may make a selection through Up and Down keys, where the phrasesdisplayed in the pull-down list are arranged sequentially in descendingorder of frequency of use (also a kind of combination probability), sothat the user may select rapidly the desired phrase from the phrasesdisplayed with relation to the first ideogram or character sequencewithout inputting the entire ideograms or character sequences to therebyimprove the efficiency of inputting the phrase and also improve anexperience of the user to some extent.

In some embodiments, after the virtual on-screen keyboard layout isinitialized, and before the operation 101 is performed, the secondprobability statistical table matching at least one character havingbeen displayed by at least one virtual key having been currentlyselected may be further invoked, where the second probabilitystatistical table records association probabilities of candidateideograms or candidate character sequences respectively being associatedwith the at least one character; and a part of the candidate ideogramsor candidate character sequences with the highest associationprobabilities or all of the candidate ideograms or candidate charactersequences in the second probability statistical table are displayed inother area than the current virtual on-screen keyboard layout.

The other area than the current virtual on-screen keyboard layout may bea strip-shaped display box or a popped-up box.

Since an area attribute of a input area may be fixed as, e.g., ashopping-related webpage search area, a video-related webpage searcharea, a reading-related webpage search area, etc., the followingoperations may be further performed before the operation 101:

Firstly the area attribute of the input area is detected, and a keywordfor the area attribute is determined.

Then invoking the first probability statistical table matching at leastone character having been displayed by at least one virtual key havingbeen selected may be implemented particularly by picking out, from theset of first probability statistical tables stored in a preset storagearea, at least one matching first probability statistical tableaccording to the keyword for the area attribute; and invoking, from thepicked-out at least one first probability statistical table, the firstprobability statistical table matching at least one character havingbeen displayed by at least one virtual key having been selected by theuser.

For the user inputting the character, the input attribute of the inputarea may be taken into account (e.g., an input attribute, of shopping, awebpage, reading, etc., associated with input contents) and the firstprobability statistical table or the second probability statisticaltable to be invoked may be associated with the input at least onecharacter by determining the keyword for the input attribute to therebyimprove the efficiency of inputting the character.

In the operation 102, a part of the candidate characters with thehighest combination probabilities or all of the candidate characters inthe invoked first probability statistical table are displayedrespectively on virtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout bymaking any of the candidate characters displayed on one of the virtualkeys configured with a higher level have higher combination probability,and the focus is reset on the preset virtual key.

TABLE 1 P 13.33 Z 11.67 S 8.33 U 8.33 O 7.50 M 6.67 H 5.83 D 5.00 E 5.00V 4.17 X 4.17 F 3.33 W 3.33 Q 2.50 T 2.50 A 1.67 B 1.67 G 1.67 Y 1.67 I0.83 J 0.83 C 0.00 K 0.00 K 0.00 N 0.00 R 0.00

If the virtual on-screen keyboard layout illustrated in FIG. 2A isadopted, when the invoked first probability statistical table is Table 1with candidate characters consisted of letters as shown above, then thevirtual on-screen keyboard layout with candidate characters displayedthereon as illustrated in FIG. 3 will be formed, where P with thehighest combination probability is displayed on the virtual keyconfigured with the highest level, and Z, S, U and O with lowercombination probabilities than P are displayed on the four virtual keysconfigured with the level 1, where correspondence relationship betweenthe four virtual keys and the four candidate characters of Z, S, U and Owill not be limited to any particular correspondence relationship butthey may be displayed in any correspondence relationship. For example, Zmay be displayed on any of the four virtual keys, and S may be displayedon any of the remaining three virtual keys, and U and O may also bedisplayed under the same rule. Alike, the remaining candidate charactersare displayed respectively on the remaining virtual keys by making anyof the remaining virtual keys configured with a higher level display oneof the remaining candidate characters with higher combinationprobability.

In the operation 103, the operations above are performed periodicallyuntil an ideogram or a character sequence to be input is selected by theuser, and the ideogram or the character sequence selected by the user isinput in the input area.

After the at least one virtual key is selected by the user, if theideogram or character sequence to be input by the user is absent amongthe candidate ideograms or character sequences displayed in the otherarea than the current virtual on-screen keyboard layout, then a part ofthe candidate ideograms or candidate character sequences with thehighest association probabilities or all of the candidate ideograms orcandidate character sequences in the invoked second probabilitystatistical table may be respectively displayed on the virtual keys inthe current virtual on-screen keyboard layout; and when one of thevirtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected by theuser, the candidate ideogram or the character sequence displayed on thevirtual key selected by the user may be input in the input area.

The character inputting method above will be described below in someexamples thereof.

It shall be noted that the intelligent terminal is a widely appliedelectronic product applicable to a number of countries and languages, sothe character as referred to in the disclosure may be a Chinese phoneticalphabet, an English character or a character in another language; andalso may include a punctuation, a special character, etc. The charactermay be input in reality by the user performing a switch operation toselect the type of character to be input, and moreover the Chinesecharacter input method includes Quanpin (full phonetic spelling), Wu Bi(5-stroke) and other input methods, so the user may switch between thedifferent input methods as needed and perform the character inputoperation according to the disclosure under the type of character andthe input method.

A solution to inputting a Chinese character will be described belowtaking the Quanpin input method as an example.

Firstly the virtual on-screen keyboard layout is initialized, andcharacters are displayed based on the default first probabilitystatistical table.

FIG. 4A illustrates the default virtual on-screen keyboard layoutselected by the user, where the virtual key configured with the level 0is positioned centrally, the virtual keys configured with the level 1are positioned one step apart from the central virtual key, the virtualkeys configured with the level 2 are positioned two steps apart from thecentral virtual key, the virtual keys configured with the level 3 arepositioned three steps apart from the central virtual key, and so on.

As illustrated in FIG. 5A, in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout ofFIG. 4A, all the candidate characters in the default first probabilitystatistical table are displayed on the virtual keys by making any of thecandidate characters displayed on one of the virtual key configured withhigher level have a higher combination probability, where in FIG. 5A,the candidate character I displayed in the central position where thefocus is set has the highest combination probability indicating a higherprobability of being used by the user, and any of the other candidatecharacters displayed on one of the virtual keys spaced a greater numberof steps from the virtual key displaying I has a lower combinationprobability.

Moreover in view of a small screen of some intelligent terminals and apleasing appearance of the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, thevirtual on-screen keyboard layout as illustrated in FIG. 4A may beadjusted to the virtual on-screen keyboard layout including a lessnumber of virtual keys as illustrated in FIG. 4B, and accordingly theentire candidate characters in the first probability statistical tablecan not be displayed at the same time on the virtual on-screen keyboardlayout as illustrated in FIG. 4B. Taking the candidate characters givenin Table 1, only the first thirteen candidate characters with thehighest combination probabilities can be displayed firstly, and then canbe replaced by the 14^(th) to 26^(th) candidate characters by using thepage turning key. Alike all the candidate characters can be displayedthrough switching once, and reference may be made for details thereof toFIG. 5B illustrating a schematic diagram of the respective candidatecharacters in the first probability statistical table displayed on thevirtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout illustrated inFIG. 4B.

If the Chinese character to be input is “

(with the phonetic spelling as HAO)”, then the user firstly needs toselect the letter “H” which does not have the highest combinationprobability in the current default first probability statistical tableand is displayed on the virtual key spaced two steps from the virtualkey where the focus is set. The focus may be moved by using the inputcontrol device so that the focus reaches the virtual key where “H” isdisplayed, and “H” may be selected through the confirmation key in theinput control device, so that the virtual key where “H” is displayed isdisplayed in grayscale (in the zone with inclined strips), for example.At this time, the second probability statistical table matching theselected “H” will be invoked and a part of candidate Chinese characterssuch as “

(with the phonetic spelling as HE)”, “

(with the phonetic spelling as HAN)” , “

(with the phonetic spelling as HA)”, “

(with the phonetic spelling as HAI)”, “

(with the phonetic spelling as HUI)”, “

(with the phonetic spelling as HOU)” and “

(with the phonetic spelling as HU)” with the highest associationprobabilities in the second probability statistical table may bedisplayed preferentially in the Chinese character display area otherthan the current virtual on-screen keyboard layout as illustrated inFIG. 6A. It shall be noted that due to a limited size of the displayscreen of the intelligent terminal, only a part of the candidate Chinesecharacters with the highest association probabilities in the secondprobability statistical table may be displayed for a pleasingappearance.

Moreover the first probability statistical table matching the “H”displayed on the selected virtual key is invoked from the set of firstprobability statistical tables according to “H”, and the focus is reset.As illustrated in FIG. 6B, in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, theletter “E” with the highest combination probability of being combinedwith “H” is displayed on the virtual key where the focus is set. Then,the user needs to select “A”, the focus may be moved by one step throughthe input control device to thereby reach the virtual key where “A” isdisplayed, and “A” may be selected through the confirmation key in theinput control device. At this time, the second probability statisticaltable matching the selected character combination “HA” will be invoked,and as illustrated in FIG. 6C, a part of the candidate Chinesecharacters with the highest association probabilities in the secondprobability statistical table may be displayed preferentially in theChinese character display area other than the current virtual on-screenkeyboard layout. Moreover the first probability statistical tablematching “HA” is invoked from the set of first probability statisticaltables according to the selected “A”, and as illustrated in FIG. 6D, inthe virtual on-screen keyboard layout, the letter “O” with the highestcombination probability with “HA” is displayed on the virtual key wherethe focus is set.

If the candidate Chinese characters displayed in the Chinese characterdisplay area include the Chinese character “

(with the phonetic spelling as HAO)” desired to be input, then the usermay have the candidate Chinese characters in the second probabilitystatistical table displayed respectively on the virtual keys in thevirtual on-screen keyboard layout through the switch key in the inputcontrol device, select the virtual key where the Chinese character

(with the phonetic spelling as HAO)” is displayed through the movementkeys and the confirmation key, and input the Chinese character “

(with the phonetic spelling as HAO)” in the input area.

If the candidate Chinese characters displayed in the Chinese characterdisplay area do not include the Chinese character “

(with the phonetic spelling as HAO)” desired to be input, then the usermay need to further select a letter. Particularly as illustrated in FIG.6E, since “O” to be selected at this time is displayed on the virtualkey where the focus is set, “O” may be selected directly through theconfirmation key in the input control device, and at this time, thesecond probability statistical table matching the character combination“HAO” may be invoked and a part of candidate Chinese characters in thesecond probability statistical table displayed in the Chinese characterdisplay area. The second probability statistical table may include theChinese character “

(with the phonetic spelling as HAO)”, and a part of candidate Chinesecharacters with the highest association probabilities or all of thecandidate Chinese characters in the currently invoked second probabilitystatistical table may be displayed preferentially on the virtual keys inthe current virtual on-screen keyboard layout through the switch key inthe input control device. As illustrated ill FIG. 6F, the Chinesecharacter “

(with the phonetic spelling as HAO)” to be input at this time isdisplayed exactly on the virtual key where the focus is set, so theChinese character “

(with the phonetic spelling as HAO)” may be input to the input areathrough the input key of the input control device.

It shall be noted that the embodiment of the disclosure will not belimited to the uppercase or the lowercase, although switching betweenthe uppercase and the lowercase may be preset in the input controldevice so that different first probability statistical tables may beselected for the uppercase and the lowercase.

As illustrated in FIG. 7, some embodiments of the disclosure furtherprovide a character inputting device, which may be arranged in anintelligent terminal with a screen, e.g., an intelligent TV set, a PC, asmart phone, etc., possibly, for example, by being integrated inside theintelligent terminal or attached to the intelligent terminal.

The character inputting device may include a memory 201 and one or moreprocessors 202, where the memory 201 stores one or more computerreadable program codes, and the one or more processors 202 areconfigured to execute the one or more computer readable program codes:

when a virtual key in a virtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected bya user, to invoke a first probability statistical table matching atleast one character having been displayed by at least one virtual keyhaving been selected, where the first probability statistical tablerecords combination probabilities of candidate characters respectivelybeing combined with the at least one character, and the firstprobability statistical table is stored in an in-built memory of thecharacter inputting device;

to display a part of the candidate characters with the highestcombination probabilities or all of the candidate characters in theinvoked first probability statistical table respectively on virtual keysin the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, and to reset focus on a presetvirtual key, wherein in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, thepreset virtual key is configured with the highest level, any of othervirtual keys spaced a greater number of steps apart from the presetvirtual key is configured with a lower level, the number of steps is theleast number of virtual keys along a path from the preset virtual key tothe any of other virtual keys, and any of the candidate charactersdisplayed on one of the virtual keys configured with a higher level hashigher combination probability; and

when an ideogram or a character sequence to be input is selected by theuser, to input the ideogram or the character sequence selected by theuser in an input area.

In some embodiments of the disclosure, the one or more processors 202 inthe character inputting device are further configured to execute the oneor more processor readable program codes to initialize the virtualon-screen keyboard layout and to display characters based on a defaultfirst probability statistical table before the virtual key in thevirtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected by the user.

In some embodiments of the disclosure, the one or more processors 202 inthe character inputting device are further configured to execute the oneor more processor readable program codes:

before the first probability statistical table matching the at least onecharacter having been displayed by at least one virtual key having beenselected is invoked, to further invoke a second probability statisticaltable matching the at least one character, where the second probabilitystatistical table records association probabilities of candidateideograms or candidate character sequences respectively being associatedwith the at least one character; and to display a part of the candidateideograms or candidate character sequences with the highest associationprobabilities or all of the candidate ideograms or candidate charactersequences in the second probability statistical table in other area thanthe current virtual on-screen keyboard layout.

In some embodiments of the disclosure, the one or more processors 202 inthe character inputting device are further configured to execute the oneor more processor readable program codes:

after selection of virtual keys, to display a part of the candidateideograms or candidate character sequences with the highest associationprobabilities or all of the candidate ideograms or candidate charactersequences in the invoked second probability statistical tablerespectively on the virtual keys in the current virtual on-screenkeyboard layout; and

when one of the virtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout isselected by the user, to input the candidate ideogram or the charactersequence displayed on the virtual key selected by the user in the inputarea.

In some embodiments of the disclosure, the one or more processors 202 inthe character inputting device are further configured to execute the oneor more processor readable program codes:

Before the user selects the virtual key, to detect an area attribute ofthe input area and to determine a keyword for the area attribute; topick out, from the set of first probability statistical tables stored ina preset storage area, at least one matching first probabilitystatistical table according to the keyword for the area attribute; andto invoke , from the picked-out at least one first probabilitystatistical table, the first probability statistical table matching atleast one character having been displayed by at least one virtual keyhaving been selected by the user.

Moreover some embodiments of the disclosure further provide anintelligent terminal 3 as illustrated in FIG. 8 in which the characterinputting device 31 according to some embodiments above of thedisclosure is arranged.

It shall be noted here the character inputting device 31 according tosome embodiments of the disclosure may further include an input controldevice which may be a remote controller, where the remote controller maybe an existing input control device including four direction keys of Up,Down, Left and Down or may be an input control device including circularnavigation keys as illustrated in FIG. 9, where keys representing eightdifferent directions (Up, Down, Left, Right, Up-Left, Down-Left,Up-Right and Down-Right) are arranged on a circular control disk, andthere may be more directions, in which the focus is moved, due to theadditional direction keys to hereby avoid a troublesome selection of acharacter or a character sequence or an ideogram in a number of movementoperations so as to improve the efficiency of inputting of an inputtingdevice to some extent.

Moreover the input control device may be configured with a keyboardlayout arranged the same as the virtual on-screen keyboard layout inFIG. 2B. The remote controller includes a circular disk with a largerradius and an annular rotating disk with a smaller radius, and thedesired virtual key in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout may beselected by clicking on the corresponding key in the keyboard layout ofthe input control device for the same effect as that in FIG. 9, so arepeated description thereof will be omitted here.

As illustrated in FIG. 10, some embodiment of the disclosure furtherprovides an intelligent terminal 100.

The intelligent terminal 100 may include a memory 110, one or more inputunits, one or more output unit, one or more processors 120, etc. Thoseskilled in the art may appreciate that the intelligent terminal will notbe limited to the structure of the intelligent terminal illustrated inFIG. 10 but can include more or less components than those asillustrated, or combine some of the components or arrange differentcomponents, where:

The memory 110 may be configured to store software programs and modules,and the one or more processors 120 may be configured to run the softwareprograms and modules stored in the memory 110 to thereby perform variousfunction applications and data processing. Moreover the memory 110 mayinclude a high-speed random access memory and may further include anonvolatile memory, e.g., at least one magnetic disk memory device, aflash memory device or another volatile solid-state memory device. Inaddition, the memory 110 may further include a memory controllerconfigured to provide an access of the one or more processors 120 andthe input unit to the memory 110.

The one or more processors 120 as a control center of the intelligentterminal 100, has the respective components of the entire intelligentterminal connected by various interfaces and lines, and runs or executesthe software programs and/or modules stored in the memory 110 andinvokes the data stored in the memory 110 to perform the variousfunctions of the intelligent terminal 100 and process the data tothereby manage and control the intelligent terminal as a whole.Optionally, the processor 120 may include one or more processing cores;and optionally the processor 120 may be integrated with a applicationprocessor and a modem processor, where the application processorgenerally handles the operating system, the user interfaces, theapplications, etc., and the modem processor generally handles wirelesscommunication. As can be appreciated, the modem processor may not beintegrated into the processor 120.

The intelligent terminal 100 may include input units such as atelevision broadcast receiver, a HDMI (High-Definition MultimediaInterface) interface 130, a USB interface 140 and an audio/video inputinterface. The input units may further include a remote control receiver150 for reception of signal sent by remote controller. Further, inputunit may further include a touch sensitive surface and other inputdevice. The touch sensitive surface may be implemented by various typesof resistive, capacitive, infrared, surface sound wave and other types.The other input device may include but will not be limited to one ormore selected from a group consisted of a physical keyboard, functionalkeys (e.g., volume control press keys, a power press key, etc.), a trackball, a mouse, a joystick, etc.

The output units may be configured to output audio signal, video signal,alarm signal, vibration signal, etc. The output units may includedisplay panel 160, audio output module 170, etc. The display panel 160may be configured to display the information input by the user or theinformation provided to the user, and various graphic user interfaces ofthe intelligent terminal 100, where these graphic user interfaces may becomposed of graphics, texts, icons, videos or any combination thereof.For example, the display panel 160 may be configured in the form of aLiquid Crystal Display (LCD), an Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED)display, Flexible Display, three-dimensional (3D) display, CRT, PlasmaDisplay Panel, etc.

The intelligent terminal 100 may further include at least one sensor,e.g., an optical sensor, motion sensor, and other sensors. Particularly,the optical sensor may include an ambient optical sensor and a proximitysensor, where the ambient optical sensor may adjust the brightness ofthe display panel 160 according to the illumination of ambient lightrays, and proximity sensor may disable the display panel 160 and/or abacklight when the intelligent terminal 100 moves to a certain position.The intelligent terminal 100 may be further configured with a gyroscope,a barometer, a hygrometer, a thermometer, an infrared sensor and othersensors.

The intelligent terminal 100 may further include an audio circuit (notillustrated) with a speaker and a microphone. The speaker and themicrophone may provide audio interfaces between the user and theintelligent terminal 100. The audio circuit may receive and convertaudio data into an electric signal and transmit the electric signal tothe speaker, and the speaker may convert the electric signal into anaudio signal for output; and on the other hand, the microphone mayconvert a collected audio signal into an electric signal which isreceived by the audio circuit and then converted into audio data, andthe audio data may be further output to the one or more processors 120for processing and then transmitted to another terminal, or the audiodata may be output to the memory 110 for further processing. The audiocircuit may further include an earphone jack for communication betweenan external earphone and the intelligent terminal 100.

The intelligent terminal 100 may further include RE (Radio Frequency)circuit 180. The RF circuit 180 may be configured to receive andtransmit certain signal. Typically, the RF circuit 180 may include butwill not be limited to an antenna, at least one amplifier, a tuner, oneor more oscillators, a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card, atransceiver, a coupler, a Low Noise Amplifier (LAN), a duplexer, etc.

The intelligent terminal 100 may further include WiFi (Wirelessfidelity) module (not illustrated). WiFi is a technology of short-rangewireless transmission, and the intelligent terminal 100 may assist theuser in transmitting and receiving an email, browsing a web page,accessing streaming media, etc., and also provide the user with awireless broadband access to the Internet, through the WiFi module. Itcan be appreciated that the WiFi module is not necessarily required forthe intelligent terminal 100 and may be omitted as desired withoutdeparting from the scope of the disclosure.

Particularly, the memory 110 and the one or more processors 120 may befurther configured as described in the above description with respect tothe embodiments illustrated in FIG. 7, and for details, reference can bemade to FIG. 7 and the relevant description thereof.

According to those embodiments of the disclosure described above, thereis provided a character inputting device with a virtual on-screenkeyboard layout, where the virtual on-screen keyboard layout may includea plurality of virtual keys of the same and/or different sizes, and inthe virtual on-screen keyboard layout, a highest level may be configuredfor a preset one of the virtual keys, and any of other virtual keysspaced a greater number of steps apart from the preset virtual key maybe configured with a lower level; and when a virtual key in the virtualon-screen keyboard layout is selected by a user, a first probabilitystatistical table matching at least one character having been displayedby at least one virtual key having been selected is invoked, a part ofcandidate characters with the highest combination probabilities or allof the candidate characters in the invoked first probability statisticaltable may be respectively displayed on virtual keys in the virtualon-screen keyboard layout by making any of the candidate charactersdisplayed on one of the virtual keys configured with a higher level havehigher combination probability, and the focus may be reset on the presetvirtual key, so that any candidate character displayed on one of thevirtual keys closer to the preset virtual key has a higher combinationprobability where the focus is set, to thereby avoid moving operationstroublesome to the user and facilitate the selection of the virtual keysfor the characters desired by the user. Moreover after the at least onevirtual key is selected by the user, candidate ideograms or charactersequences may be displayed on the virtual keys in the current virtualon-screen keyboard layout by also making any of candidate ideograms orcandidate character sequences displayed on one of the virtual keysconfigured with a higher level have higher association probability sothat any ideogram or character sequence displayed on one of the virtualkeys closer to the focus has a higher association probability, and inthis way, the ideogram or character sequence desired by the user can bereached along a path with a less number of steps to thereby improve theefficiency of inputting the ideogram or character sequence, and also anexperience of the user, to some extent.

Those skilled in the art shall appreciate that the embodiments of thedisclosure may be embodied as a method, a system or a computer programproduct. Therefore the disclosure may be embodied in the form of anall-hardware embodiment, an all-software embodiment or an embodiment ofsoftware and hardware in combination. Furthermore the disclosure may beembodied in the form of a computer program product embodied in one ormore computer useable storage mediums (including but not limited to adisk memory, a CD-ROM, an optical memory, etc.) in which computeruseable program codes are contained.

The disclosure has been described in a flow chart and/or a block diagramof the method, the device (system) and the computer program productaccording to the embodiments of the disclosure. It shall be appreciatedthat respective flows and/or blocks in the flow chart and/or the blockdiagram and combinations of the flows and/or the blocks in the flowchart and/or the block diagram may be embodied in computer programinstructions. These computer program instructions may be loaded onto ageneral-purpose computer, a specific-purpose computer, an embeddedprocessor or a processor of another programmable data processing deviceto produce a machine so that the instructions executed on the computeror the processor of the other programmable data processing device createmeans for performing the functions specified in the flow(s) of the flowchart and/or the block(s) of the block diagram.

These computer program instructions may also be stored into a computerreadable memory capable of directing the computer or the otherprogrammable data processing device to operate in a specific manner sothat the instructions stored in the computer readable memory create anarticle of manufacture including instruction means which perform thefunctions specified in the flow(s) of the flow chart and/or the block(s)of the block diagram.

These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto the computeror the other programmable data processing device so that a series ofoperational steps are performed on the computer or the otherprogrammable data processing device to create a computer implementedprocess so that the instructions executed on the computer or the otherprogrammable device provide steps for performing the functions specifiedin the flow(s) of the flow chart and/or the block(s) of the blockdiagram.

Although the preferred embodiments of the disclosure have beendescribed, those skilled in the art benefiting from the underlyinginventive concept may make additional modifications and variations tothese embodiments. Therefore the appended claims are intended to beconstrued as encompassing the preferred embodiments and all themodifications and variations coming into the scope of the disclosure.

Evidently those skilled in the art may make various modifications andvariations to the disclosure without departing from the spirit and scopeof the disclosure. Thus the disclosure is also intended to encompassthese modifications and variations thereto so long as the modificationsand variations come into the scope of the claims appended to thedisclosure and their equivalents.

1. A character inputting method, comprising: when a virtual key in avirtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected by a user, invoking afirst probability statistical table matching at least one characterhaving been displayed by at least one virtual key having been selected,wherein the first probability statistical table records combinationprobabilities of candidate characters respectively being combined withthe at least one character; displaying a part of the candidatecharacters with the highest combination probabilities or all of thecandidate characters in the invoked first probability statistical tablerespectively on virtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout,and resetting focus on a preset virtual key, wherein in the virtualon-screen keyboard layout, the preset virtual key is configured with thehighest level, any of other virtual keys spaced a greater number ofsteps apart from the preset virtual key is configured with a lowerlevel, the number of steps is the least number of virtual keys along apath from the preset virtual key to the any of other virtual keys, andany of the candidate characters displayed on one of the virtual keysconfigured with a higher level has higher combination probability; andperforming operations above periodically until an ideogram or acharacter sequence to be input is selected by the user, and inputtingthe ideogram or the character sequence selected by the user in an inputarea.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein before the virtual keyin the virtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected by the user, themethod further comprises: initializing the virtual on-screen keyboardlayout and displaying characters based on default first probabilitystatistical table.
 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein beforethe first probability statistical table matching the at least onecharacter having been displayed by the at least one virtual key havingbeen selected is invoked, the method further comprises: invoking asecond probability statistical table matching the at least one characterhaving been displayed by the at least one virtual key having beenselected, wherein the second probability statistical table recordsassociation probabilities of candidate ideograms or candidate charactersequences respectively being associated with the at least one character;and displaying a part of the candidate ideograms or candidate charactersequences with the highest association probabilities or all of thecandidate ideograms or candidate character sequences in the secondprobability statistical table in other area than the virtual on-screenkeyboard layout.
 4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the methodfurther comprises: displaying a part of the candidate ideograms orcandidate character sequences with the highest association probabilitiesor all of the candidate ideograms or candidate character sequences inthe invoked second probability statistical table respectively to replacethe candidate characters displayed on the virtual keys in the virtualon-screen keyboard layout; and when one of the virtual keys in thevirtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected by the user, inputting acandidate ideogram or a candidate character sequence displayed on thevirtual key selected by the user in the input area.
 5. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein before the virtual key in the virtualon-screen keyboard layout is selected by the user, the method furthercomprises: detecting an area attribute of the input area and determininga keyword for the area attribute; and invoking the first probabilitystatistical table matching the at least one character having beendisplayed by the at least one virtual key having been selectedcomprises: picking out, from a set of first probability statisticaltables stored in a preset storage area, at least one first probabilitystatistical table matching the keyword for the area attribute; andinvoking, from the at least one first probability statistical table, thefirst probability statistical table matching the at least one characterhaving been displayed by the at least one virtual key having beenselected by the user.
 6. A character inputting device, comprising amemory and one or more processors, wherein the memory stores one or morecomputer readable program codes, and the one or more processors areconfigured to execute the one or more computer readable program codes torealize: when a virtual key in a virtual on-screen keyboard layout isselected by a user, to invoke a first probability statistical tablematching at least one character having been displayed by at least onevirtual key having been selected, wherein the first probabilitystatistical table records combination probabilities of candidatecharacters respectively being combined with the at least one character;to display a part of the candidate characters with the highestcombination probabilities or all of the candidate characters in theinvoked first probability statistical table respectively on virtual keysin the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, and to reset focus on a presetvirtual key, wherein in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, thepreset virtual key is configured with the highest level, any of othervirtual keys spaced a greater number of steps apart from the presetvirtual key is configured with a lower level, the number of steps is theleast number of virtual keys along a path from the preset virtual key tothe any of other virtual keys, and any of the candidate charactersdisplayed on one of the virtual keys configured with a higher level hasa higher combination probability; and after an ideogram or a charactersequence to be input is selected by the user, to input the ideogram orthe character sequence selected by the user in an input area.
 7. Thedevice according to claim 6, wherein the one or more processors arefurther configured to execute the one or more processor readable programcodes: to initialize the virtual on-screen keyboard layout and displaycharacters based on a default first probability statistical table beforethe virtual key in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected bythe user.
 8. The device according to claim 6, wherein the one or moreprocessors are further configured to execute the one or more processorreadable program codes: before the first probability statistical tablematching the at least one character having been displayed by the atleast one virtual key having been selected is invoked, to invoke asecond probability statistical table matching the at least one characterhaving been displayed by the at least one virtual key having beenselected, wherein the second probability statistical table recordsassociation probabilities of candidate ideograms or candidate charactersequences respectively being associated with the at least one character;and to display a part of the candidate ideograms or candidate charactersequences with the highest association probabilities or all of thecandidate ideograms or candidate character sequences in the secondprobability statistical table in other area than the virtual on-screenkeyboard layout.
 9. The device according to claim 8, wherein the one ormore processors are further configured to execute the one or moreprocessor readable program codes: to display a part of the candidateideograms or candidate character sequences with the highest associationprobabilities or all of the candidate ideograms or candidate charactersequences in the invoked second probability statistical tablerespectively to replace the candidate characters displayed on thevirtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout; and when one ofthe virtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected bythe user, to input a candidate ideogram or a candidate charactersequence displayed on the virtual key selected by the user in the inputarea.
 10. The device according to claim 6, wherein the one or moreprocessors are further configured to execute the one or more processorreadable program codes: before the virtual key in the virtual on-screenkeyboard layout is selected by the user, to detect an area attribute ofthe input area and to determine a keyword for the area attribute; topick out, from a set of first probability statistical tables stored in apreset storage area, at least one first probability statistical tablematching the keyword for the area attribute; and to invoke, from the atleast one first probability statistical table, the first probabilitystatistical table matching the at least one character having beendisplayed by the at least one virtual key having been selected by theuser.
 11. An intelligent terminal, comprising a character inputtingdevice comprising a memory and one or more processors, wherein thememory stores one or more computer readable program codes, and the oneor more processors are configured to execute the one or more computerreadable program codes: when a virtual key in a virtual on-screenkeyboard layout is selected by a user, to invoke a first probabilitystatistical table matching at least one character having been displayedby at least one virtual key having been selected, wherein the firstprobability statistical table records combination probabilities ofcandidate characters respectively being combined with the at least onecharacter; to display a part of the candidate characters with thehighest combination probabilities or all of the candidate characters inthe invoked first probability statistical table respectively on virtualkeys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout, and to reset focus on apreset virtual key, wherein in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout,the preset virtual key is configured with the highest level, any ofother virtual keys spaced a greater number of steps apart from thepreset virtual key is configured with a lower level, the number of stepsis the least number of virtual keys along a path from the preset virtualkey to the any of other virtual keys, and any of the candidatecharacters displayed on one of the virtual keys configured with a higherlevel has a higher combination probability; and after an ideogram or acharacter sequence to be input is selected by the user, to input theideogram or the character sequence selected by the user in an inputarea.
 12. The intelligent terminal according to claim 11, wherein theone or more processors are further configured to execute the one or moreprocessor readable program codes: to initialize the virtual on-screenkeyboard layout and display characters based on a default firstprobability statistical table before the virtual key in the virtualon-screen keyboard layout is selected by the user.
 13. The intelligentterminal according to claim 11, wherein the one or more processors arefurther configured to execute the one or more processor readable programcodes: before the first probability statistical table matching the atleast one character having been displayed by the at least one virtualkey having been selected is invoked, to invoke a second probabilitystatistical table matching the at least one character having beendisplayed by the at least one virtual key having been selected, whereinthe second probability statistical table records associationprobabilities of candidate ideograms or candidate character sequencesrespectively being associated with the at least one character; and todisplay a part of the candidate ideograms or candidate charactersequences with the highest association probabilities or all of thecandidate ideograms or candidate character sequences in the secondprobability statistical table in other area than the virtual on-screenkeyboard layout.
 14. The intelligent terminal according to claim 13,wherein the one or more processors are further configured to execute theone or more processor readable program codes: to display a part of thecandidate ideograms or candidate character sequences with the highestassociation probabilities or all of the candidate ideograms or candidatecharacter sequences in the invoked second probability statistical tablerespectively to replace the candidate characters displayed on thevirtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout; and when one ofthe virtual keys in the virtual on-screen keyboard layout is selected bythe user, to input a candidate ideogram or a candidate charactersequence displayed on the virtual key selected by the user in the inputarea.
 15. The intelligent terminal according to claim 11, wherein theone or more processors are further configured to execute the one or moreprocessor readable program codes: before the virtual key in the virtualon-screen keyboard layout is selected by the user, to detect an areaattribute of the input area and to determine a keyword for the areaattribute; to pick out, from a set of first probability statisticaltables stored in a preset storage area, at least one first probabilitystatistical table matching the keyword for the area attribute; and toinvoke, from the at least one first probability statistical table, thefirst probability statistical table matching the at least one characterhaving been displayed by the at least one virtual key having beenselected by the user.